Coroner lists Ruiz’s official cause of death as hypothermia

Claudia Ruiz, a 44-year-old Silt woman who was found dead on The Crown in the midvalley on May 23, died of hypothermia, the Pitkin County Coroner’s Office said in a statement released Monday. The manner of death was ruled accidental, the office said.

Pitkin County Undersheriff Ron Ryan said previously that an autopsy showed no signs of sexual assault and no trauma to the body. Ruiz also had no defensive wounds, he said.

Ruiz’s daughter spotted her boarding a bus in Glenwood Springs on Saturday, May 17. Surveillance cameras on the bus showed Ruiz getting off at Willits.

Ryan said witnesses reported seeing Ruiz at precise times in midvalley locations between May 17 and 24. That led authorities to believe she accessed The Crown via the north side rather than via the south. The witnesses reported seeing her alone and on foot, according to Ryan. The base of The Crown is roughly 2 miles from the Willits bus stop.

The Crown is accessed by a handful of steep routes, including Nancy’s Path, from the north side. It has vehicular access via the south side. Ryan said there is no indication Ruiz was ever on the south side of The Crown.

A rancher found her body near a stock pond. He said it was about a quarter-mile from the top of Nancy’s Path and about a quarter-mile from the nearest four-wheel-drive road.

Ruiz’s family and friends from their church launched a search for her in the midvalley after she disappeared. They said they were particularly concerned because she didn’t have her medication for a mental health issue.